W&M baseball earns No. 1 seed, aims for CAA tournament title

WILLIAMSBURG — Though Nick Thompson is a relative newcomer to William and Mary baseball, he is plenty familiar with the school. He grew up in Chesapeake. Both parents earned undergraduate and law school degrees from W&M. An aunt and uncle graduated from there, as well.

Yet the impact of the Tribe's first regular-season title didn't hit Thompson until he looked up in the stands as he walked off the field in Charleston, S.C., last weekend after the clinching victory.

"My mom was just in tears," Thompson said. "I looked at her and was wondering what's going on. She couldn't stop crying. She was like, we've been trying for 30 years. Seeing her and the feelings that she had kind of gave me a little understanding of what it meant to the program and to this team."

The Tribe (32-20) is the Colonial Athletic Association regular-season champ and No. 1 seed for the first time, heading to the conference tournament that begins Wednesday in Wilmington, N.C.

"The regular-season title is representative of how good you are over the entire season," head coach Brian Murphy said. "You've got to be good for seven weekends. The tournament has greater significance because of the stakes, but we're very proud of what we've accomplished. It took a lot of effort by a lot of people over the whole season. It's not just getting hot for one weekend."

W&M and No. 2 seed College of Charleston earned first-round byes in the six-team, double-elimination event. The Tribe opens Thursday at noon against the winner of No. 4 Delaware vs. No. 5 Northeastern, who play Wednesday.

Unlike last season when the CAA got three teams into the NCAA tournament field, only the tournament winner is likely to go this season. The league's depth is down a bit. College of Charleston has the highest Rating Percentage Index among CAA teams at 61. The Tribe is 75th in the latest NCAA RPI. Last season, the Tribe's RPI was 33, its strength of schedule 58th.

"It's really cool when you do something that no one has done in school history," junior Michael Katz said. "It means a lot to me, personally, and definitely for all the guys.

"I think we're really confident going in. We know what every team has to offer, we know what we're capable of. What it comes down to is just doing what we do — not trying to do too much, just stay with and trust what we've been doing all year."

The Tribe's formula for success this season is big bats and solid pitching. W&M is in the top 10 nationally in nine offensive categories — among them, fifth in team batting (.313), third in scoring (8.2 rpg), fourth in runs (424) and hits (609), sixth in on-base percentage (.401), third in slugging percentage (.475).

Katz and Thompson are at the top of a lineup full of productive hitters. Katz (.372) leads the nation in runs batted in (72), is third in total bases (151), seventh in home runs (14), fourth in doubles (24) and sixth in slugging percentage (.677).

The Tribe has five players hitting .300 or better and 10 players with at least 35 hits, not counting backup catcher, designated hitter and pinch-hitter extraordinaire Devin White (.368).

Thompson, a 6-foot-1, 210-pound mid-year transfer from East Carolina, bats a team-high .381, which leads the CAA. He is tied for the national lead in runs (66) and averages 1.27 runs per game. His .490 on-base percentage is 12th in the nation and leads the CAA.

He might be having a better year on the baseball field than in the classroom, which is no small feat. He earned a bachelor's degree in biochemistry in 2 1/2 years at East Carolina, with a 4.0 grade-point average. After arriving at W&M in January, he is working on a master's degree in molecular biology.

Thompson, the state Gatorade Player of the Year at Western Branch in 2011, played two years at ECU. But he decided to transfer because he was looking for "a change of scenery."

"Another reason I made the switch is that I wanted to play every day," he said. "I knew I would play every day. It didn't matter where to me, just as long as I got my at-bats. I've played well, I guess."

William and Mary recruited him in high school — the Tribe offered him the best financial aid package, he said — but he said that it felt "too close to home."

Two years later, Thompson has fit in well, despite the late start.

"Obviously, a great bat in the lineup," Katz said. "He's on base all the time. Definitely a run producer. Having another bat in the lineup — we've got plenty of them and he's another one that's been there and been consistent for us all year. He's been huge."

Thompson's versatility helped as the season progressed. He began the year in the outfield. When all-conference second baseman Ryan Lindemuth broke a bone in his hand almost four weeks ago, the staff moved Kevin Casey from third to second and Thompson from the outfield to third base.

"I think that over the recruiting process," Thompson said, "they liked my versatility and my ability to play multiple positions was kind of a good recruiting tool that I used. I think we're utilizing that right now, and I don't mind. Whatever's best for the team."

The recruiting pitch to Thompson last summer from Murphy and former head coach Jamie Pinzino was the role that he could play in the ascent of the program.

"The most important thing is to continue to make progress with the program and not just say, hey, we made it to an (NCAA) regional one year, that's good enough for us," Thompson said. "My job would be to kind of help the transition and continue this thing on the upswing. I think establishing that mentality that we are competing for a regional every year, would be a big thing for the program."